Pacific Power outlines preliminary route options for 500 kV “Blueprint South” transmission project

Pacific Power project staff updated the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners on preliminary route alternatives for a proposed 500 kilovolt transmission backbone project the company calls “Blueprint South,” saying the line is intended to reinforce the regional transmission system and enable future renewable-energy interconnections.

The presentation, led by John Anello of Pacific Power and accompanied by Power Engineers project manager Derek Bell, covered the study area (roughly from the Prineville/Bend-Redmond region south toward the Klamath area), potential corridor groupings, engineering and environmental constraints, and public-engagement plans. “This is a project called we call Blueprint South,” Anello said during the presentation. “The purpose of this project again is it's reinforcing the backbone system of the entire region.”

Pacific Power described four north–south corridor groupings in Deschutes County, with multiple variations between the Bend–Redmond area and the Chiloquin/Klamath region. The company said its analysis favors collocating new lines alongside existing infrastructure where feasible (roads, existing transmission corridors and rights-of-way) but noted tradeoffs: co-location can reduce impacts on undeveloped land while concentrating risk from single events such as wildfires. “If you have same circuit lines ... you could lose both lines and you have no redundancy,” Anello said.

The company displayed conceptual tower types and right-of-way widths for a 500 kV system and described engineering screening that avoids steep slopes, major river crossings and sensitive wetlands where practicable. Anello said the proposed line will be a new, separate right-of-way rather than an upgrade of an existing lower-voltage line; “it's a brand new line with brand new right of way,” he said.

Responding to questions from commissioners and members of the public, Pacific Power said the Blueprint South project will not directly address near-term local load shortfalls such as Lakeview’s separate needs for power to support a biomass plant, but it could lower the cost of later local connections by bringing high-voltage facilities closer. “Directly this project won't support that; indirectly it will bring a 500 kV line closer which will reduce the cost in getting future power to people,” Anello said.

The company said it has formed two community working groups (Bend/Redmond area and Klamath Falls area), has held multiple meetings, and plans a series of public open houses: in Prineville and Bend (dates cited by staff as the 11th), Chiloquin and Klamath Falls (the 12th) and a virtual session (the 18th). Attendees will be able to view route boards and use a GIS station to see how alternatives relate to private parcels, staff said. The project’s targeted in-service date was described as 2032, with a construction start window discussed around 2029; Pacific Power cautioned that permitting remains a significant uncertainty.

Pacific Power also described how the new line and associated substations would be used operationally: 500 kV transmission is intended to strengthen the long-distance backbone and improve the system’s ability to move and balance generation across the region; lower-voltage substations (e.g., 500/230 kV) would provide tie-in points to developers and distribution networks. “Those 230 lines, will then be able to connect to other generators,” Anello said, describing how new substations would facilitate later renewable generation connections.

Commissioners and the public asked about tower spacing, proximity to features such as Pine Mountain and Newberry Crater, and interactions with federal transmission corridors and Bonneville Power Administration facilities. Pacific Power said many alternatives follow established federal corridors where multiple 500 kV lines already exist, while other options include greenfield segments to avoid particular constraints.

Company staff said technical routing continues in parallel with public engagement and that final routing and siting decisions will depend on additional engineering, environmental permitting and landowner agreements. For further information, Anello provided contact details and reiterated the company’s commitment to continuing outreach.